Decision charter · Captured Aug 4

Consolidate 7 regional distribution centers into 4 before peak season

Drift Analyst is now monitoring this decision continuously.

Escalates to leadership if: Any guardrail moves from watch → drift · Two guardrails show pressure at once · A guardrail can’t be confirmed as holding for 2+ observation cycles

Cut cost & complexity — protect service and the peak deadline

Not optimizing for · Short-term transition efficiency

Decision owner

Dana Whitfield · COO / EVP Operations

Authority

Executive leadership

Why now · problem statement

The 7-DC network is too costly and brittle to run through peak season; consolidate to 4 before peak or absorb the cost and risk of running it as-is.

Decision date

Aug 4

Peak-season deadline

Oct 1 (peak season start)

Non-negotiable guardrails

Customer service level ≥ 96%

Transition spend inside the contingency envelope

Cutover sequence follows the approved plan

Complete before peak season

Accepted tradeoff

Temporary inefficiency accepted to finish before peak

Success criteria

Network operating across 4 consolidated distribution centers before peak season.
Customer service level held at or above 96% throughout the transition.
Transition spend contained within the approved contingency envelope.
No critical transition work carried into peak season.

Enabling assumptions — what made this decision safe

Carrier capacity stays stable through the transition

If carriers tighten, premium freight rises and the cost envelope erodes.

The Dallas cutover lands on schedule

Dallas anchors the sequence; a slip cascades into the remaining cutovers.

The contingency envelope is sufficient

The approved reserve absorbs transition friction without re-authorization.

Customer demand holds near forecast

SLA math assumes baseline volume, not an early peak spike.

These are the conditions the agent is chartered to protect — guardrails it won't let erode, assumptions it watches for cracks.